Tracker Jacker
by mockinjay14
Summary: <html><head></head>I'm the Tracker Jacker. I'm the Capitol's weapon against Katniss Everdeen. I'm just a piece in their Games. This is Peeta's story during Mockingjay, and the third book in the 'Games' trilogy. I don't own The Hunger Games or any of it's characters.</html>
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

I place the last card down, forming a card house. Then, I violently destroy the house, just like the Capitol destroyed my home. My district. My family. My old life. It's all gone. I'm a prisoner of the Capitol, now.

I won the seventy-fifth Hunger Games with a girl, Katniss Everdeen. I loved her. She pretended to love me to win the Games. It wasn't until the Victory Tour that we started talking again. Then they placed us in the Quarter Quell, a special Hunger Games, where other victors had to compete as tributes. Things didn't go the President's way. Some rebels rescued Katniss, and some other tributes from the arena. But not me.

The Capitol captured some tributes before the rebels could. One second I was killing Brutus, the male from District Two, thinking I'd lost Katniss. And then the explosions started, and I really did lose her. She's far away with the rebels, who want to use her to win the war.

I don't get to leave this room, unless I'm being questioned. But I didn't even know about the rebellion until the Capitol officials told me. My old mentor, Haymitch Abernathy knew. But he didn't tell me. If I would have know, I never would have let them separate us in the arena. Haymitch betrayed me.

Yesterday, I had a meeting with the President. Today I'll be interviewed by Caesar Flickerman, and I have to convince the rebels to stop fighting. I only agreed to do it once President Snow promised me he wouldn't hold anything against Katniss. Although I don't trust he'll actually do this if Katniss was captured.

My old prep team from the Games, start to prepare me for the interview. My prep team and stylist, Portia are prisoners, too. Just because they were involved with District Twelve.

Portia comes in and helps me get dressed.

"So, did they rescue Cinna for Katniss?" I ask. Cinna was Katniss's stylist.

Portia gives me a look. "No." she says. "They killed him for creating that mockingjay dress."

Then the Peacekeepers drag me to the interview stage. And then the interview starts. "So... Peeta... Welcome back." says Caesar.

"I bet you thought you'd done your last interview with me, Caesar." I say with a fake smile.

"I confess, I did," says Caesar. "The night before the Quarter Quell... Well, who ever thought we'd see you again?"

I frown. "It wasn't part of my plan, that's for sure," I say.

"I think it was clear to all of us what your plan was. To sacrifice yourself in the arena so that Katniss Everdeen and your child could survive." he says.

My child, my last effort to have the Quarter Quell canceled. My child was a lie, of course.

"That was it. Clear and simple." I say. "But other people had plans as well."

"Why don't you tell us about the last night in the arena? Help us sort a few things out." says Caesar.

"That last night... to tell you about that last night... well, first of all, you have to imagine how it felt in the arena. It was like being an insect trapped under a bowl filled with steaming air. And all around you, jungle... green and alive and ticking. The giant clock ticking away your life. Every hour promising some new horror. You have to imagine that in the past two days, sixteen people have died- some defending you. At the rate things are going, the last eight will be dead by morning. Save one. The victor. And your plan is that it won't be you." I say.

"Once you're in the arena, the rest of the world becomes very distant. All the people you loved or cared about almost cease to exist. The pink sky and the monsters in the jungle and the tributes who want your blood become your final reality, the only one that ever mattered. As bad as it makes you feel, you're going to have to do some killing, because in the arena, you only get one wish. And it's very costly." I say.

"It costs your life," says Caesar.

I shake my head. "Oh, no. It costs a lot more than your life. To murder innocent people? It costs everything you are." I say remembering.

"Everything you are." Caesar repeats.

"So you hold onto your wish. And that last night, yes, my wish was to save Katniss. But even without knowing about the rebels, it didn't feel right. Everything was too complicated. I found myself regretting I hadn't run off with her earlier in the day, as she had suggested. But there was no getting out of it at that point." I say.

"You were too caught up in Beetee's plan to electrify the salt lake," says Caesar.

I run my fingers through my hair. "Too busy playing allies with each other. I should have never let them separate us!" I say suddenly. "That's when I lost her."

"When you stayed at the lightning tree, and she and Johanna Mason took the coil of wire down to the water," he says.

"I didn't want to!" I say. "But I couldn't argue with Beetee without indicating we were about to break away from the alliance. When that wire was cut, everything went insane. I can only remember bits and pieces. Trying to find her. Watching Brutus kill Chaff. Killing Brutus myself. I know she was calling my name. Then the lightning bolt hit the tree, and the force field around the arena... blew out."

Caesar gives me a look. "Katniss blew it out, Peeta. You've seen the footage."

Yes, Katniss technically blew the force field out, and everyone thinks Katniss was always part of the rebellion. But I know Katniss. She didn't know.

"She didn't know what she was doing." I say. "None of us could follow Beetee's plan. You can see her trying to figure out what to do with that wire,"

Caesar puts his hands up. "All right. It just looks suspicious. As if she was part of the rebel's plan all along." he says.

I stand up, and lean towards Caesar. "Really? And was it part of her plan for Johanna to nearly kill her? For that electric shock to paralyze her? To trigger the bombing?" I yell. Katniss wouldn't do what she did if she would've known that District Twelve would be bombed shortly after. She wouldn't have blown out the force field if she'd know that a lot of people wouldn't survive. That my family would be killed. "She didn't know Caesar! Neither of us knew anything except that we were trying to keep each other alive!"

"Okay." says Caesar. And I run my fingers through my hair and sit back down. Caesar studies me carefully. "What about your mentor, Haymitch Abernathy?" he asks.

"I don't know what Haymitch knew." I say.

Caesar tilts his head. "Could he be part of the conspiracy?" he asks.

"He never mentioned it," I say.

"What does your heart tell you?" he asks.

"That I shouldn't have trusted him," I say. Caesar gestures for me to continue. "That's all." I say.

Caesar pats my shoulder. "We can stop now if you want." he says.

I frown. "Was there more to discuss?" I ask.

"I was going to ask your thoughts on the war, but if you're too upset..." says Caesar.

President Snow told me have to encourage the rebels to give up. Meaning I have to continue this interview. "Oh, I'm not too upset to answer that." I say.

I take a deep breath and consider my words. Then, I look straight into the camera. "I want to tell everyone watching- whether you're on the Capitol or rebel side- to stop for just a moment and think about what this war could mean. For human beings. We almost went extinct fighting each other before. Now our numbers are even fewer. Our conditions more tenuous. Is this really what we want to do? Kill ourselves off completely? In the hopes that- what? Some decent species will inherit the remains of the earth?" I say thinking about what this rebellion has already done to my district.

"I don't really... I'm not sure I'm following..." says Caesar.

I nod. "We can't fight one another, Caesar," I say. "There won't be enough of us left to keep going. If everybody doesn't lay down their weapons- and I mean, as in very soon- it's all over anyway."

"So... you're calling for a cease-fire?" asks Caesar.

I nod. "Yes. I'm calling for a cease-fire," I say. "Now why don't we ask the guards to take me back to my quarters so I can build another hundred card houses?"

"All right." says Caesar. "I think that wraps it up. So back to our regularly scheduled programming."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I'm back in my quarters. I just hope I convinced someone to stop fighting. I've built more card houses, but believe it or not, I'm board with that. So I lay on the small uncomfortable bed and think. I wonder what it was like those last few moments in District Twelve. I wonder who made it out, and who was killed. I only know for certain my family didn't make it. President Snow told me himself.

Peacekeepers come, and take me all the way to President Snow's office. Then, I'm thrown into a chair across from him. "Peeta," the President says nodding towards me.

"President Snow," I say.

The President laughs quietly. "I brought you here to congratulate you, you pointed out a great fact about the war, at the interview." he says.

I nod. "Thanks?" I say unsure if he meant it.

"However, you said something I wasn't too fond of, as well." he says. I look up. "We both know Katniss Everdeen didn't mean to end up part of the rebellion. But unfortunately, she is, she has been the second she pulled out those berries in the arena."

"And you've done some rebellions things, as well." he says. "What do you know about the rebellion?"

I let out an annoyed breath. "I don't know where they are, or what their plans are, I don't know anything!" I say.

"Very well," says President Snow. "Put him with the others."

Peacekeepers grab me by my arms and drag me away.

They throw me into a cell, and I realize it's adjoining with Johanna Mason. Her hair has been shaved and she's covered in cuts and bruises, and she just sits there staring at her wrists, slightly shaking. And now I realize what I'm here for.

I close my eyes and count to ten, this was the only way to get myself to calm down when I knew I was in trouble with my mother before she'd beat me. But it doesn't help at all, because this situation is much worse.

The President thinks I have information about the rebels and he's going to try to torture it out of me, except, I don't have any information.

The same Peacekeepers that brought me here grab Johanna by her arms and drag her to a tank. A man questions her, but Johanna refuses to answer. The Peacekeepers shove her into the tank and send electoshocks through her. I look away, but I can still hear her screams.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

My last few weeks have been nothing but torture, and hearing other people get tortured. Everyday, Peacekeepers take me out of my cell, and the man I saw the first day questions me. But I don't know anything. Then, the Peacekeepers beat me up and drag me back to my cell. They've made me do one short interview after the brought me here.

I'm one of the lucky ones compared to the way the torture others here, I don't complain. They're torturing anyone who was involved with the Quarter Quell, mentors, stylists, prep teams, even my avoxes have been tortured. The red headed avox, who they call Lavinia. And District Twelves former Peacekeeper, Darius. He steeped in to stop the new Head Peacekeeper from pushing Gale, Katniss's friend, after the Peacekeepers caught him with some wild game.

When they first started torturing Lavinia, they shoot too much voltage through her, and her heart stopped. Darius wasn't so lucky. They beat him, cutting parts of his body off. And that man asked him questions, but avoxes can't even talk. The had their tongues cut out. He finally died, and I was glad for him.

Peacekeepers pull me out they handcuff me to a chair I look up and see two faces. The man with his dark hair and unforgiving gaze. And President Snow. I raise my eyebrows but don't speak.

"Guess who's gonna be on TV tomorrow," says the man unhappily.

President Snow smiles. "Peeta, we want you to give a live presentation on why this revolution needs to end. We've discovered the rebel location. They're underneath the ruins of District Thirteen." says the President. "They're filming all these all these anti capitol videos, it's cute, they think they can win."

"Now, Peeta," says the man. "Let's get to the real reason we brought you here. What are the rebel plans?"

I shake my head. "I don't know anything, besides what you told me." I say.

"Fine." says the President, standing up. "Be ready for your presentation." The President leaves and the Peacekeepers come to beat me up.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Later, my tortured, beaten prep team come to cover my bruises and cuts. And a very bloody Portia helps me into decent cloths. The Peacekeeper set me in a chair in front of a map. "Just read the words up there," says the man, pointing to a screen. I not, close my eyes, and try to relax, while President Snow introduces me.

Once I see my face on another monitor, I start taping my foot nervously. They are just using Katniss. They are still using me. We are both still part of there game. I let out an annoyed breath. Then read the words out loud. But I keep looking up to the other screen, with me on it. The map behind me lights up in the areas I talk about.

Wile I'm talking, the screen changes to a picture of Katniss, standing in the rubble of a building. But the setting looks familiar. I blink a few times and realize Katniss is in the ruins of my childhood house. My family's bakery, and I wonder if my family's bodies are there.

The screen flashes back to me. As I continue with my speech, many things run through my head. District Twelve. Blown to bits, just like Thirteen was last time we had a war. We couldn't beat them then. What makes them think we can now. The screen changes again to a clip of Finnick talking about Rue. And it keeps switching between my presentation, and the rebel footage. I move from my chair.

"Send bombers to destroy the district!" shouts President Snow. When the Capitol finally stops the rebel footage, President Snow is angry. "Clearly, the rebels are now attempting to disrupt the dissemination of information they find incriminating," says the President. "But both truth and justice will reign! The full broadcast will resume when security has been reinstated."

"Mr. Mellark?" he asks and I look his way. "Given tonight's demonstration, do you have any parting words for Katniss Everdeen?"

Katniss. The girl I've been in love with since I was five years old. The girl I've been through two Hunger Games with. The girl who is going to be bombed unexpectedly tonight.

"Katniss... how do you think this will end?" I ask. "What will be left? No one is safe. Not in the Capitol. Not in the districts. And you in Thirteen..." I hesitate to say my next sentence, wondering what my punishment will be. But I need to say it, just like I needed to burn that bread, and throw it to Katniss, when we were twelve. "Dead by morning!" I say.

"End it!" shouts the President. The screen lights up with more rebel pictures, but I continue to warn them in the hopes that they'll get the message. Peacekeepers knock the camera over as they grab me.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The Peacekeepers throw me into a new room. It's completely empty. I sit on the floor and hope my warning to District Thirteen made a difference. After hours of doing nothing, I lay down and fall asleep.

When I wake up, I'm strapped onto a counter. And that man is standing near me. I assume he'll start questioning me now, or maybe he's done trying to get information from me and he's just going to torture me.

He presses a button and a screen comes down from the ceiling. It stops right where I can see it. Then, he takes out a syringe and stab it into my shin. Then whatever was in the syringe is in me. I don't really care what they do to me anymore.

I don't know what was in the syringe, but I can already feel it affecting me. My brain feels foggy, and I'm starting to get anxious. Without a word, the man presses another button, turning the screen on, and he walks through the door, shutting it behind me.

I turn my attention to the screen and see a figure. A girl, with dark hair and gray eyes. I know I've seen this person before. I search my cluttered head for this girls name. Katniss. I think. The girl who lives in the Seam of my district. Katniss is in a tree, and I'm under it with a few other people that I recognize. Katniss is cutting at something. A Tracker Jacker nest. Then it falls and the swarm of Tracker Jackers attack us.

Each day, the man comes in and inserts the syringe into me. Then plays a video of Katniss. One where she points her bow and arrows at me. Videos of her killing my friends. And the most recent video was of her standing in what was left on my family's bakery. I don't know why it's destroyed, but I have a feeling it had something to do with Katniss. I don't trust her.

The President comes in. "Hello, Mr. Mellark." he says.

"What happened to my district?" I ask.

"What do you think happened?" he asks sadly. When I don't answer he continues. "Tell me Peeta, what do all those clips have in common?"

I search through my brain. "Katniss killing a lot of people." I say.

The President nods. "Now, tell me what happened to your district." he says.

"Katniss... burned it." I say.

President Snow stands up and pats my shoulder. "And what does that make Katniss?"

I don't need to think to answer this question. The right word had been in my mind for days now.

"A mutt."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

I wake up in a new room, and three doctors are staring at me. "It's okay, Peeta," says one. "Your safe here in District Thirteen now." District Thirteen? I'm in the heart of the rebellion? I remember who else is here in Thirteen. The mutt. They brought me here so she could kill me.

I recently came to the realization that Katniss was a mutt, and she wanted to kill me. She killed my friends and my family, she's injured me. She wants to kill me. I don't know why, but it's the only explanation I have at the moment.

That's why I have to kill her.

The door opens, and I lock eyes with the grey eyed mutt. She looks happy, I guess because she thinks she can finally kill me.

I stand, and push the doctors away from me. I start to move toward the mutt. She starts moving towards me, her hands out stretched, and I know she's going to attack. I hold my arms out, too. Already with a strategy in mind. Stupid mutt.

When the mutt gets close enough, I lock my fingers around her throat. I guess this will be easier than I thought.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

It's been days after my attempt to kill the mutt. They actually knocked me unconscious before I could do any real damage.

The door opens, and I'm scared that it's the mutt, I look toward the door, and in comes in a familiar looking girl with blonde hair and blue eyes, like me. She crosses the room and gives me a warm smile. "Peeta?" she says. "It's Delly. From home."

"Delly?" I ask. Delly Cartwright? She's my childhood best friend. "Delly. It's you." I say.

"Yes! How do you fell?" she asks.

I sigh. "Awful. Where are we? What's happened?" I ask. The doctors said I was in District Thirteen, but I should be home.

Delly frowns. "Well... We're in District Thirteen. We live here now." she says.

"That's what those people have been saying. But it makes no sense. Why aren't we home?" I ask.

Delly hesitates. "There was an accident." she says, then changes the subject quickly. "I miss home badly, too. I was only just thinking about those chalk drawings we used to do on the paving stones. Yours were so wonderful. Remember when you made each one a different animal?" she says.

"Yeah. Pigs and cats and things," I say. "You said about an accident?" I say hoping to get more information.

"It was bad. No one... could stay," she says. "But your going to like it here, Peeta. The people have been really nice to us. There's always food and clean cloths, and schools much more interesting," says Delly.

I raise my eyebrow. "Why haven't my family come to see me?" I ask, even though I know.

"They can't." Delly says sadly. "A lot of people didn't get out of Twelve. So we need to make a new life here. I'm sure they could use a good baker. Do you remember when your father used to let us make dough girls and boys?" she asks.

"There was a fire," I say, remembering Katniss standing in what was left of my home. "Because of Katniss!" I shout pulling at my restraints.

"Oh, no, Peeta. It wasn't her fault," says Delly.

"Did she tell you that?" I hiss at her.

"She didn't have to. I was-" Delly starts.

"Because she's lying! She's a liar! You can't believe anything she says! She's some kind of mutt the Capitol created to use against the rest of us!" I shout. Why else would President Snow know she's a mutt?

"No, Peeta. She's not a-" Delly begins, so I cut her off. Delly trusts Katniss. You can't trust Katniss. I remember what she did to me in The Hunger Games, back when I trusted her.

"Don't trust her Delly!" I warn. "I did, and she tried to kill me. She killed my friends my family. Don't even go near her! She's a mutt." I shout.

Someone pulls Delly out of the room. But I keep yelling. "A mutt! She's a stinking mutt!"

Days pass, and I start to fell a little safe here. They keep showing me clips of Katniss, one where she sings a song that I've heard before, a song her father sang while waiting at the bakery. Then people ask me what I think about the clip. Everything here in District Thirteen is clearly scheduled.

One day someone tells me that Finnick Odair, a victor who was my ally in the Quarter Quell, and Annie Cresta, another victor, where getting married, and asked me if I wanted to bake them a cake. I figured I had nothing better to do, and I did enjoy baking before the Games.

I start to wonder things, about the rebellion. Why didn't Haymitch tell me about all this?


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

I finally get the chance to yell at Haymitch when he comes to visit me.

He takes a seat next to the bed I'm strapped to. "Hey kid," he says and I roll my eyes. He thinks he can just come in here, after all that's happened, and expect me to be nice to him.

"Is this really why you came here?" I ask. "'Cause I think I deserve an apology,"

Haymitch frowns. "I know, I'm sorry for not rescuing you from the arena." he says. He's right. He didn't rescue me. He chose to rescue the mutt.

"Why was that, exactly? You can't trust her," I say.

"It's what was best for the rebellion. She's the Mockingjay. The Districts listen to her." he says.

"Well," I say. "I wasn't upset about you not rescuing me from the Quarter Quell." I say.

"Oh? Then why are you mad?" he asks.

"Why am I mad?" I ask. "I'm mad because you didn't tell me about the rebels, or the plan to get everyone out of the arena."

"Look," says Haymitch. "I wanted to tell you, but it would have put you in more danger to know things. You know what happened to Johanna Mason?" I remember what happened to her. I was there. I heard her screams. I start to sweat. "The only reason you're still alive is so that the Capitol can use you against Katniss." Haymitch blurts out then stands to leave.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

Haymitch turns around. "Remember those Tracker Jackers in your first games?" he asks. I nod. "Well they put the venom into you, and it altered your memories of Katniss into scary hallucinations.

I frown. "Let me watch the Games, than." I say.

Haymitch presses a few buttons, and a screen appears. The first thing that makes me feel like Haymitch may not be lying, is that I actually admit, at my interview with Caesar Flickerman, that I love Katniss. But how did Katniss fell about me? Once the video is over, I have plenty more questions, but not for Haymitch.

"Could I see Katniss?" I ask.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

When the door opens, and Katniss comes in, I'm a little surprised. I didn't think they would trust me. Why would they toss their precious little Mockingjay straight into a Tracker Jacker nest?

She crosses the room and stops about a yard from my bed. "Hey." she says. I'm not sure if I'm the mutt or is she is.

"Hey," I say carefully.

"Haymitch said you wanted to talk to me." she says.

"Look at you, for starters." I say. I wanted to see if she was actually a threat to me. She's a lot shorter than me. She's not very muscular. And she's skinny. She doesn't look like a threat. Although she is really beautiful, but I don't think I should have a crush on a girl who could possibly be a mutt. "You're not very big, are you?" I ask. "Or particularly pretty?"

Katniss frowns. "Well, you've looked better." she says, causing me to laugh.

"And not remotely nice." I say. "To say that to me after all I've been through."

Katniss starts to scowl. "Yeah. We've all been through a lot. And you're the one who was known for being nice. Not me." she says, but stops talking, realizing that she's not helping me think she's not a mutt. "Look," says Katniss. "I don't feel so well. Maybe I'll drop by tomorrow."

I don't speak to her until she reaches the door. There are some things I wanted to talk about with her. "Katniss. I remember about the bread." I say.

She turns to face me. "They showed you the tape of me talking about it," she says.

I shake my head. "No. Is there a tape of you talking about it?" I ask. "Why didn't the Capitol use it against me?"

"I made it the day you were rescued," she says then looks away from me. She shakes her head and looks back at me. "So what do you remember?" she asks.

"You. In the rain." I say quietly. "Digging in our trash bins. Burning the bread. My mother hitting me. Taking the bread out for the pig but then giving it to you instead."

"That's it. That's what happened," she says. "The next day, after school, I wanted to thank you. But I didn't know how."

I nod. "We were outside at the end of the day. I tried to catch you eye. You looked away. And then... for some reason, I think you picked a dandelion." I say, and she nods. "I must have loved you a lot." I say.

"You did." she says, her voice catching at the end of her words, causing her to pretend to cough stupidly, almost making me smile.

"And did you love me?" I ask.

Katniss looks at the floor. "Everyone says I did. Everyone says that's why Snow has you tortured. To break me." she says.

"That's not an answer." I tell her. I shake my head. "I don't know what to think when they showed me some of the tapes. In the first arena, it looked like you tried to kill me with those Tracker Jackers."

Katniss starts playing with her hands. "I was trying to kill all of you." she says. "You had me treed."

"Later, there's a lot of kissing. Didn't seem very genuine on your part. Did you like kissing me?" I ask.

Katniss looks around. "Sometimes. You know people are watching us now." she says.

"I know." I start to remember someone else. "What about Gale?" I ask.

Katniss looks up at me, anger written all over her face. "He's not a bad kisser either," she says.

I nod. "And it was okay with both of us? You kissing the other?" I ask.

She shakes her head. "No. It wasn't okay with either of you." she says. "But I wasn't asking your permission," she says.

I grit my teeth, but laugh. "Well, you're a real piece of work, aren't you?" I say.

And with that, she leaves.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Even though Katniss wasn't that nice when she came to talk to me, I'm almost convinced that she isn't a mutt. She seemed upset that I said she wasn't pretty, and really, that's when she started acting rude. If she is a mutt, she's a mutt with low self esteem.

Whoever is in charge of what happens to me must think Katniss is okay. And every time I start considering Katniss as I threat, Delly comes in and takes Katniss's side. I know I can trust Delly. They're starting to trust me more, in fact, tonight, they're letting me go into the dinning hall. With guards and handcuffs. But it's an improvement.

They help me balance the tray of food on my fingertips and I look around. "You can't sit next to anyone without their permission," says one of the guards. I let out an annoyed breath and look for one of my friends. I'll have better chances getting permission from someone I know. To my disappointment, everyone I would have asked are sitting near Katniss. But there is an empty seat next to Johanna Mason, and I know she'd let me sit next to her. Katniss is across from the seat I want, but I'll still go for it.

"Peeta!" says Delly once she notices me. "It's so nice to see you out... and about."

Johanna turns her head to look at me. "What's with the fancy bracelets?" she asks.

"I'm not quite trustworthy yet," I say. "I can't even sit here without your permission." I motion toward the guards.

"Sure he can sit here. We're old friends," she says and pats the seat next to her. When the guards not I take a seat and look down at my food. "Peeta and I had adjoining cells in the Capitol. We're very familiar with each other's screams." Johanna adds. Annie suddenly covers her ears with her hands, causing Finnick to wrap his arm around her and shoot Johanna a glare. "What?" Johanna asks. "My head doctor says I'm not supposed to censor my thoughts. It's part of my therapy,"

Finnick starts to whisper things to Annie to calm her down, and everyone else pretends to eat. "Annie," says Delly. "Did you know it was Peeta who decorated your wedding cake? Back home, his family ran the bakery and he did all the icing,"

Annie looks up. "Thank you, Peeta. It was beautiful." she says.

"My pleasure, Annie." I say.

Finnick looks at Annie. "If were going to fit in that walk, we better go," Finnick says and helps Annie clean up their area. "Good seeing you Peeta." he says.

I look at him. "You be nice to her, Finnick. Or I may try and take her away from you." I say.

Finnick blinks a few times. I guess I shouldn't have said that. Everyone looks at me with shocked expressions. "Oh, Peeta," says Finnick. "Don't make me sorry I restarted your heart." Then he leads her away. I clench my fists.

"He did save your life, Peeta. More than once." says Delly.

I nod at Katniss. "For her." I say, suddenly defensive of myself. "For the rebellion. Not for me. I don't owe him anything."

Nobody speaks for a moment.

"Maybe not. But Mags is dead and you're still here. That should count for something." Katniss says, anger clear in her voice.

I grit my teeth. "Yeah, a lot of things should have count for something that don't seem to, Katniss. I've got memories I can't make sense of, and I don't think the Capitol touched them. A lot of nights on the train, for instance." I say.

I look at Gale who's next to Katniss, glaring at me. "So," I say gesturing between Katniss and Gale with my spoon. "Are you two officially a couple now, or are they still dragging out the star-crossed lovers thing?" I ask getting a little jealous for some reason.

"Still dragging," Johanna says sounding board. I started clenching and unclenching my fists.

"I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself." says Gale.

I look him right in the eye. "What's that?" I ask.

Gale nods at me. "You," he answers.

"You'll have to be a little more specific," I say. "What about me?"

Johanna looks at me. "That they've replaced you with the evil-mutt version of yourself," she says.

I let out a breath.

"You done?" Gale asked Katniss.

I watch her stand and don't look away until they reach the door. I have the strangest urge to hurt Gale Hawthorne. Not because he called me a mutt. Just because he walked out with Katniss.

Delly clears her throat. "Peeta Mellark!" she yells. I look at her. "How could you be so rude to Katniss, she may not have been tortured by the Capitol, but she's been through a lot, too!"

I roll my eyes. "Yeah. I know the Games, and all," I say.

Delly slams her fork down on the table. "The Capitol destroyed her district. The people of Thirteen pressured her into becoming the Mockingjay. Taking responsibility for all the deaths in this war. She was shot!" says Delly. I tilt my head. "And this whole time, she was worried about you!" Delly starts breathing hard. "Gale signed up to rescue you from the Capitol. And then you wake up and think she's a mutt! How would you feel if you were Katniss, Peeta?" Delly screams.

"She's a mutt! I love her! She tried to kill me! She saved my life! I have to kill her! I'd rather die then lose her! She's a mutt! You're the mutt!"

I notice everyone in the dinning hall watching me, I guess I said these things out loud, guards pull me back to my room, and straps me back onto the bed.

I'm the mutt, everyone thinks so. I'm the one who can't go into the dinning hall without handcuffs and two guards. I'm the Capitol's weapon against Katniss Everdeen. I'm the Tracker Jacker.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

The first time the districts rebelled against the Capitol, muttations were created to use against the rebels. One muttation, a bird that could copy human sounds, the Jaber Jay, which was used in the war to spy on the rebels hearing their plans, then repeating them to the Capitol.

The rebels realized what the birds did, and used them to send false messages to the Capitol. The Capitol released the birds to the wild, assuming they would die off. Instead they mated with the wild mockingbirds, surviving in a new form. Mockingjays. That's what Katniss is. A Mockingjay. Something the Capitol never meant to exist.

Tracker Jackers are another muttation made to use against the Capitol. Their coded to attack anything that disturbs their nest. Once they make a person their target, they track them down, and attack. Once the war was over, they destroyed the nests in the Capitol, but left the nests in the districts, and their still the Capitol's weapon.

They start to send me to workout in the mornings, with guards. Apparently, they need footage of me training for war, even though they told me they wouldn't send me to fight. I'm too damaged.

When I found out they were sending Katniss to fight in the Capitol, I was a little surprised. But, they sent her along with Finnick and Gale and others.

Now, I'm at a meeting with President Coin, District Thirteen's leader. I have a strange feeling about her. She just reminds me of President Snow, I guess.

"You've done quite well on your morning workouts, Mr. Mellark." she tells me.

I look around. "Thanks," I say.

"I actually think you'd be a good soldier." she says.

"You're kidding," I say.

"The propo's need more excitement, and I think you're the perfect choice." she says. "I'm sending you to fight in Squad 451. Maybe you've heard of it, Miss Everdeen's in that squad."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

I'm on a train headed for the Capitol. If I said I was surprised they sent Katniss here, then words can't describe how shocked I am they sent me. They even gave me a gun.

When I get off the train, and my new squad sees me, a man, who, I guess is in charge, checks the back of my hand which is stamped with the numbers 451. Then he takes my gun, and goes to make a call. Of course they don't want me here. I'm one of the Capitol's weapon.

"It won't matter," I tell the rest of the squad. "The President assigned me herself. She decided the propos needed some heating up." The first thing he does when he gets back is instruct someone to set up a guard schedule for the others to follow. Even though no guards came with me, and I finally got a little freedom, it's ended. These people are my new guards.

They feed me, and tell me to sleep in full view so they can see me. They don't trust me at all, even though I have really tried to change my point of view about Katniss. I really have no idea what the Capitol turned me into, who I am anymore. When it's Finnick's turn to watch me, he tosses something to me. A rope.

"Tie knots." he says. "It helped me back when Annie was in the Capitol."

I nod. "Thanks," I say, and begin to tie knots into the rope. While I think about Katniss. She was a hunter, back before the Games. Then a tribute. Then I thought she was my lover. Then, we were victors. Then my friend, and neighbor. My fiancee. Then an enemy, target, and mutt.

And then, it's Katniss's turn to watch me. I stayed silent for a long time, but I figure if I did love her at one point, that Peeta would at least want me to try to remember her. But she may not love me.

"These last couple of years must have been exhausting for you." I say. "Trying to decide whether to kill me or not,"

She takes a small step in my direction. "I never wanted to kill you." she says. "Except when I thought you were helping the careers kill me." The careers, I must have thought they were my friends that she killed. "After that, I always thought of you as... an ally." she says.

"Ally." I say slowly. "Friend. Lover. Victor. Enemy. Fiancee. Target. Mutt. Neighbor. Hunter. Tribute. Ally. I'll add it to the list of words I use to try to figure you out." I say. "The problem is, I can't tell what's real anymore, and what's made up."

"Then you should ask, Peeta. That's what Annie does." says Finnick, and I wonder how much he heard.

"Ask who? Who can I trust?" I ask.

"Well," says a woman. "Us for starters. We're your squad,"

I shake my head. "You're my guards." I point out.

"That too." she says. "But you saved a lot of lives in Thirteen. It's not the kind of thing we forget."

I try to find differences between by actual memories and the ones I think the Capitol touched. I remember a conversation I had on the Victory Tour. I turn to Katniss. "You're favorite color... is green." Katniss looks up at me her eyes filled with hope. "That's right." she says. "And yours is orange." she says.

The bright color you really only see in the Capitol? "Orange?" I ask. Why would I like that color? I think she's lying to me.

"Not bright orange." she says. "But soft. Like the sunset. At least, that's what you told me once,"

I think. "Oh." I close my eyes and imagine the sunset. The color is really beautiful. "Thank you." I say nodding.

"You're a painter. You're a baker. You like to sleep with the windows open. You never take sugar in your tea. And you always double-knot your shoelaces." she says, then runs into her tent. She knows me this well. I think I can trust her.

I eventually fall asleep, and when I wake up Katniss, Finnick, and Gale are gone. When the woman who told me I could trust the squad, last night, notices I'm awake, she calls us to get in a circle. "Good morning, I'm Jackson. I have an idea. You mention something you think happened. And we'll tell you if it's true of not." she says.

"It's like a game." I say.

She nods. "Real or not real," she says.

I start asking questions, and when Katniss and Gale and Finnick get back, Jackson explains the game to them. Not that there are people who have known me for over a day, it's easier to trust answers. Everything they say makes sense, and I feel like I'm slowly finding who I was.

The next day we have to go film a propo the leader of our squad, who I found out was named Boggs even gives me my gun back. "It's only loaded with blanks," he says.

I shrug. "I'm not much of a shot anyway." I say. Right now, I've been watching a soldier from Thirteen he hasn't spoken. And he reminds me of two people I watched die in the Capitol.

"You're an Avox, aren't you?" I ask him. "I can tell on the way you swallow. There were two Avoxes with me in prison. Darius and Lavina, but the guards mostly called them the redheads. They'd been our servants in the Training Center, so they arrested them, too. I watched them being tortured to death. She was lucky. They used too much voltage and her heart stopped right off. It took days to finish him off. Beating, cutting off parts. They kept asking him questions, but he couldn't speak, he just made these horrible animal sounds. They didn't want information, you know? They wanted me to see."

I look at everyone, for a reply. "Real of not real?" I ask. But no one answers me. "Real or not real?!" I demand. They said they would give me information.

Boggs speaks up. "Real." he says. "At least, to the best of my knowledge... real."

" I thought so. There was nothing... shiny about it." I say then wander over from the group muttering to myself.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

We arrive at the block, and we position ourselves. As we walk down the block, shooting at windows, I have to follow behind the camera crew. When Gale shoots at a pod, a trap the Capitol set up, we all duck out of the way, as bullets shoot over our heads. Boggs orders us forward after a while.

The propo director, stops us before we get up, so she can film our responses while the bullets were raining down on us. And some of the squad aren't very good actors.

"Pull it together, Four-Five-One," says Boggs, while checking for the next pod, he steps backward, triggering a bomb. I watch in horror, as his legs are blown off.

My mind starts to blur. I watch the squad around Boggs, but I can't hear them. Suddenly I'm confused.

My eyes open quickly, and I'm sitting in a room, on a blue sofa. The squad members are watching TV. We are on the screen. I watch Katniss and a soldier lift Boggs up and then, I'm running toward Katniss, and throwing her to the ground. I raise my gun over her and try to crush her with it. Then, one of the soldiers in our squad tackles me, and I toss him right into a pod. A net circles around him, and he's covered in blood. A wave of black tar begins to fall. Everyone shoots toward a building, and Jackson shoves handcuffs on me and pulls me inside. The screen gets covered by the tar.

"There's no aerial footage. Boggs must have been right about their hovercraft capacity." says one camera man. Then they show footage of Peacekeepers shooting at the building we went into. The building collapses. Then, a reporter stands on a roof with Peacekeepers. They assume we're dead.

"Finally, a bit of luck," says one soldier.

"My father. He just lost my sister and now..." says a girl on the camera crew.

Then the TV talks about the Mockingjay, and how she deserved this violent end. I roll my eyes.

I can't believe what I did, but it all makes sense now. I'm the Capitol's weapon. I really do love Katniss. She's not a mutt, I am.

"So, now that we're dead, what's our next move?" asks Gale.

I frown. I felt threatened when Boggs' legs were blown off. And Tracker Jackers attack whoever threaten their nests. "Isn't it obvious?" I ask, sitting up. "Our next move is to kill me."


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

"Don't be ridiculous," says Jackson.

I look her right in the eyes. "I just murdered a member of our squad!" I shout, I had no idea how much the Capitol changed me. I'm insane. A threat to everyone around.

"You pushed him off you. You couldn't have know he would trigger the net at that exact spot," says Finnick.

"Who cares? He's dead, isn't he?" I ask, as I start to cry. "I didn't know. I've never seen myself like that before. Katniss is right. I'm the monster. I'm the mutt. I'm the one Snow has turned into a weapon!"

"It's not your fault, Peeta," says Finnick.

I shake my head. "You can't take me with you. It's only a matter of time before I kill someone else." I say. It's like I'm a part of the arena in the Quarter Quell. One second, I'm harmless, the next, I'm trying to kill you. "Maybe you think it's kinder to just dump me somewhere. Let me take my chances. But that's the same thing as handing me over to the Capitol. Do you think you'd be doing me a favor by sending me back to Snow?" I ask.

"I'll kill you before that happens," says Gale. "I promise." It's kind of strange, people promising to kill me in order to calm me down. I know he would kill me but I have to refuse.

"It's no good. What if you're not there to do it? I want one of those poison pills like the rest of you have." I say. The pills are called Nightlock, the work just like the berries in my first arena. You consume it and your dead. If they gave one to me, I'd eat it right then, before they could change their mind. The guilt from what I've done is eating me alive.

"It's not about you," says Katniss. "We're on a mission. And you're necessary to it." Katniss looks at the group. "Think we might find any food here?" she asks. Half of them search for food, while the other half watch me and the TV.

They bring cans of food to us, and I look at the pile. I find a can of lamb stew. I remember on Katniss's first interview, when Caesar asked her what her favorite thing about the Capitol was, she said the lamb stew. I smile a little, and hold the can out to Katniss. "Here."

Katniss takes it. "Thanks." she says, popping open the top. "It even has dried plums."

I find a can and eat, not bothering to look at the label. We're eating cookies watching TV, when the Capitol seal appears on the TV screen. President Snow appears to talk bad about Katniss, and then the screen switches to President Coin. And she says nothing but good things about Katniss.

"I had no idea how much I meant to her," Katniss says, causing Gale to laugh, and me to smile. Then the show a picture of Katniss, and it's clearly edited. They covered up all her imperfections, and honestly I prefer how she looks now compared to the photo.

Then Snow appears back on the screen looking angry. And my head starts to hurt because I've been in the same room as the President the last time the rebels cut off his message. "Tomorrow morning, when we pull Katniss Everdeen's body from the ashes, we will see exactly who the Mockingjay is. A dead girl who could save no one, not even herself." he says. The show ends.

"Except that you wont find her," says Finnick. They'll know we escaped when they don't find us.

"We can get a head start on them at least," says Katniss, she pulls out Boggs Holo, which he must have gave her. That means Katniss is in charge. A Holo shows where every pod around is positioned. Katniss asks Jackson how to work it, once she figures it out she looks up at us. "Any ideas?"

"Why don't we start by ruling out the possibilities," says Finnick. "The street is not a possibility."

"The roof tops are just as bad as the streets," says one squad member.

"We still might have a chance to withdraw, go back the way we came," says another. " But that would mean a failed mission."

"It was never intended for all of us to go forward. You just have the misfortune to be with me." says Katniss with a sigh.

"Well, that's a moot point. We're with you now," says Jackson. "So, we can't stay put. We can't move up. We can't move laterally. I think that just leaves one option." she says.

"Underground," says Gale.

"Okay, then." says Katniss. "Let's make it look like we've never been here,"

I watch them clean up, but I don't move from the blue sofa. I cross my arms when they begin to tell me to get up. "I'm not going. I'll either disclose your position or hurt someone else." I say.

"Snow's people will find you," says Finnick.

I throw my hands up. "Then leave me a pill. I'll only take it if I have to," I lie.

"That's not an option. Come along." says Jackson.

"We'll knock you out and drag you with us," says a soldier. "Which will both slow us down and endanger us."

"Stop being noble! I don't care if I die!" I shout. I turn to face Katniss. "Katniss, please. Don't you see, I want to be out of this?"

Katniss opens her mouth, then closes it. Her eyes look sad and guilty, and for a moment, I'm sure she'll give me a pill. Or shoot me. Anything. Instead she puts her famous scowl back on. "We're wasting time. Are you coming voluntarily or do we knock you out?" she asks me.

I put my head in my hands for a moment and stand. "Should we free his hands?" asks one.

"No!" I shout at her pulling my handcuffs close to me. Last time someone took them off, I killed someone.

"No," says Katniss. "But I want the key." Jackson hands it to her, and she puts it in her pocket.

I notice once we're about to climb underground the avox-soldier becomes sweaty, and he grabs one soldiers wrist. The soldier looks at us. "My brother worked down here after he became an Avox," he says. I look at both men and frown. I wish my brothers were here to comfort me. But they're both dead. "Took five years before we were able to buy his way up to ground level. Didn't see the sun once." he says.

I look at the Avox. "Well, then you just became our most valuable asset." I say. The soldier laughs and the Avox gives me a smile.

We walk for hours, and Katniss finally suggests we rest. Jackson forms a guard schedule, and I lay down. I fall in and out of sleep.

"Have you eaten?" Katniss asks me when it's her turn to guard. I shake my head, so she gives me a can, I tilt it back and chug it all down. "Peeta, when you asked about what happened to Darius and Lavinia, and Boggs told you it was real, you said you thought so. Because there was nothing shiny about it. What did you mean?" Katniss asks.

"Oh. I don't know exactly how to explain it." I say. "In the beginning, everything was just complete confusion. Now I can sort certain things out. I think there's a pattern emerging. The memories they altered with the Tracker Jacker venom have this strange quality about them. Like they're too intense or the images aren't stable. You remember what it was like when we were stung?"

"Trees shattered. There were giant colored butterflies. I fell in a pit of orange bubbles." she says. "Shiny orange bubbles."

I nod. "Right. But nothing about Darius and Lavina was like that. I don't think they'd given me any venom yet," I say.

Katniss puts her hand in her pocket she holds the key to my handcuffs in, but she makes no move to free me. "Well, that's good, isn't it? If you can separate the two, then you can figure out what's true." she says.

"Yes. And if I could grow wings, I could fly. Only people can't grow wings. Real of not real?" I ask.

"Real. But people don't need wings to survive." she says.

"Mockingjays do." I say handing her the soup can.

"There's still time. You should sleep." she says.

I lay back down and stare at a needle on one of the dials and watch it move from side to side. Katniss brushes some hair away from my forehead. I freeze but Katniss continues to smooth my hair back. I remember the last time she voluntarily touched me. Back in the Quarter Quell. On the beach. I remember out conversation.

"You're still trying to protect me. Real of not real," I whisper.

Without any hesitation, she says "Real," I nod. "Because that's what you and I do. Protect each other."

As I fall asleep, I swear to protect Katniss.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

"Katniss." I hear whispers in my dreams. Something is hunting Katniss. And I have to warn her. But I have to find a way out of my sleep, first. My eyes finally open.

"Katniss! Get out of here!" I say looking around.

"Why? What's making that sound?" she asks.

"I don't know. Only that it has to kill you," I say. Katniss opens her mouth but doesn't speak. "Run! Get out! Go!" I yell.

Everyone wakes up. "Whatever it is, it's after me. It might be a good time to split up." says Katniss. The squad refuses to leave her, and soon everyone has a weapon, except me. We move. The hissing sound seems to come from behind us. We're headed for the President's mansion. Probably to kill him. And I know it's all Katniss's idea. People start screaming. But they aren't normal screams.

"Avoxes, that's what Darius sounded like when they tortured him." I say.

"The mutts must have found them," says the director.

"So they're not just after Katniss," says a girl on the camera crew.

"They'll probably kill anyone. It's just that they wont stop until they get to her," says Gale.

"Let me go alone. Lead them off. I'll transfer the Holo to Jackson. The rest of you can finish the mission." says Katniss. People start arguing against that, but I don't listen. The screams stopped. And the hissing starts again. This time, it comes from behind us and from below. "Listen," I say. Katniss and the Avox start running, and we follow. They stop at the stairs leading down, and search the Holo. Then Katniss starts gagging.

"Masks on!" orders Jackson.

I sniff the air. It smells like Roses. Then I remember President Snow has roses with him all the time. She's just reacting to the smell. President Snow put the smell down here to bother Katniss.

We start moving again. Katniss shoots on of her explosive arrows, at a pod and keeps running. "Watch where you step, or you'll be fed to the Meat Grinder!" Katniss shouts.

We run forward, until we realize one solider is stuck in a pod. We all watch helpless as the flesh melts away from his body. I look around. The rest of the squad is frozen in place, but we have to keep moving. "Can't help him!" I shove people forward. "Can't!"

We run until we reach this Meat Grinder. Peacekeepers file in. We shoot them down, but the mutts start piling in the same way we came. They're white lizards, about the size of a human. They rip off the Peacekeepers heads. The start to crawl on all fours now.

"This way!" Katniss shouts. She hugs the wall and makes a sharp turn. Once the rest of us get through, Katniss shoots at it and the Meat Grinder activates. The mutts get closer. Katniss grabs the Avoxes arm. "Forget the mission. What's the quickest way above ground?" she asks. We run across a ledge and over a bridge. The Avox points at a ladder.

Katniss looks at all of us. "Wait! Where are Jackson and Leeg One?" she asks. I look around. Leeg One must be girl one the camera crew.

"They stayed at the Grinder to hold the mutts back," says one soldier.

"What?" Katniss lunges back for the bridge, but the soldier grabs her, and pulls her back.

"Don't waste their lives, Katniss. It's too late for them. Look!" he points to the ledge where the mutts are approaching.

"Stand back!" Gale shouts and shoots an explosive arrow at the bridge. Katniss stares at the mutts for a long time, as she shoots explosive arrows at them.

The mutts keep coming through. And I watch as one mutt makes it across. Everyone starts shouting at Katniss. I look at the Avox, he's climbing the ladder. The mutt's claws slash at Katniss's angle as I lift her off the ground. She blasts it's head off, but more are coming. I slam her into the ladder and she starts climbing. I climb too.

We reach a platform and Katniss climbs back down. I hear Gale yelling at Katniss to climb. They get to the top, and Katniss releases an explosion below. I sit down against the wall as mutt, and human flesh showers down on us.

"We can't stop here." I hear Katniss say. They tie a bandage around Gale's neck, which is wounded. I look the squad. All that's left is Katniss, Gale, the Avox, and the director. I put my head in my hands. Finnick didn't make it out. "Peeta," says Katniss.

She crouches in front of me, and pulls my hands from my face. "Peeta?" I look up at her and notice her eyes. They're silver. Not grey. I think I realized this before, but I lost the old Peeta.

"Leave me. I can't hang on." I whisper.

"Yes. You can." she says.

I shake my head. "I'm losing it. I'll go mad. Like them." I say.

Katniss presses her lips to mine. When she pulls away, she grabs my wrists gently. "Don't let him take you from me." she whispers.

She can't be trusted! I tell myself. She's a mutt! You have to kill her! No. She's my best friend. I love her.

"No. I don't want to." I say. I don't want to be the Capitol's weapon. I don't want to hurt her. I don't want President Snow to win.

Katniss grabs my hands and holds them tight. "Stay with me." she says.

I fight off the Tracker Jacker venom, remembering everything Katniss ever did for me. Remembering every conversation we had.

"Always,"


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Katniss helps me up. "How far to the street?" she asks. The Avox points up, Katniss starts climbing, I hear her shoot something. The rest of us climb up and find a Capitol woman holding a sausage, with an arrow through her heart.

I shrug and look around the apartment. Katniss looks at us. "How long do you think we have before they figure out some of us could've survived?" she asks.

Gale picks up a sculpture of a cat. "I think they could be here anytime," he says. "They knew we were heading for the streets. Probably the explosion will throw them off for a few minutes, then they'll start looking for our exit point."

Katniss looks out the window. The director looks out, too. " I know where we are. We aren't many blocks from the Presidents mansion." says the director.

"Let's check her closets," says Katniss. She looks through them. There is cloths for women and men. Katniss sees my bloody wrists. I had used the handcuffs to stop myself from having an attack. Katniss reaches for the key in her pocket, I jerk away from her. "No. Don't they help hold me together." I tell her.

"You might need your hands," says Gale.

I shake my head. "When I feel myself slipping, I dig my wrists into them, and the pain helps me focus," I say. Katniss gives me a sad look, but she moves back to the closets.

It's cold out, so we can wear cloaks and hid most of our uniform. We put our boots around our neck and use the wired shoes in the closets instead. Then we apply layers of makeup to our faces. The director wraps scarves over both Katniss's face, and my face. Katniss fills her pockets with food and first-aid supplies. Then she walks to the front door. "Stay together," she says.

And then, we are back on the street. I hear Katniss and the director whispering. The director takes the lead. Then she starts talking in a Capitol accent about fur undergarments. We reach the store, an underwear store isn't my ideal choice for a hide out, but it's better than the sewers... I guess.

The director pushes the door open, and we go inside. The director walks in the front of the store, and I find a Capitol woman who looks like a cat. Her face is tattooed with stripes, and long cat whiskers. If I was the old Peeta, I'd be stopping myself from laughing at her. But now that all my hope for life is gone, I only feel bad for this woman.

The director takes off her wig. "Tigris. We need your help." she says. Tigris. The name is familiar, she was a stylist for the Games, long ago. "Plutarch said you could be trusted." says the director. Katniss removes her scarf and her wig. Tigris growls like a cat would, and slides a rack of clothing back and waves us forward. There is a stairway. She gestures for Katniss go down there.

Instead, Katniss looks at Tigris. "Did Snow ban you from the Games?" she asks. "Because I'm going to kill him, you know." Tigris smiles and Katniss crawls in. We follow and Tigris seals the hole. Katniss must have turned on the light down here.

Katniss gives Gale's neck wound some stitches. Then she wraps a bandage over it. "You can rest now." she tells him. "It's safe here," Gale falls asleep. Katniss turns to me. She rinses the blood off my wrists, and bandages them under my handcuffs. "You've got to keep them clean, otherwise the infection could spread and-"

I cut her off. "I know what blood poisoning is, Katniss. Even if my mother isn't a healer."

Katniss looks at me. "You said that same thing to me in the first Hunger Games. Real or not real?" she asks.

I smile. "Real. And you risked your life getting the medicine that saved me?" I ask.

"Real." she says. "You were the reason I was alive to do it." she says.

"Was I?" I'm starting to get confused. Fighting the venom. It's all I can do. I use the cuffs to stop it. After, all my energy is gone. "I'm so tired, Katniss." I say.

"Go to sleep." she tells me.

I shake my head. "No. I could have an attack. I need to fight it." I say.

Katniss sighs. "I could shackle you to one of the stair supports." she says. "If it would make you feel better." I nod. Once she shackles me, it's only a matter of minutes before I fall asleep.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Once everyone wakes up, Katniss clears her throat. "I did something I shouldn't have," she says. "I lied about the mission to kill Snow. I put everyone in danger because I wanted revenge. And now there's only five of us left."

"Katniss, we all knew you were lying about Coin sending you to assassinate Snow." says Gale.

Katniss frowns. "You knew, maybe. The soldiers from Thirteen didn't," she says.

"Do you really think Jackson believed you had orders from Coin?" asks the director. "Of course she didn't. But she trusted Boggs, and he clearly wanted you to go on."

Katniss shakes her head. "I never even told Boggs what I planned to do," she says.

Gale sighs. "You told everyone in Command! It was one of your conditions for being the Mockingjay. 'I kill Snow.'" he points out.

"But not like this," she says. "It's been a complete disaster."

Gale and the director try convincing her, but I stay silent. Katniss turns to me after minutes of arguing with them. "What do you think, Peeta?" she asks.

"I think... you still have no idea. The effect you can have." I tell her. I use the handcuffs to help myself sit up. "None of the people we lost were idiots. They knew what they were doing. They followed you because they believed you really could kill Snow."

My words seem to convince Katniss. She looks at the director. "Where are we, Cressida?" she asks. I know the director's name now, I just need to find out the Avox's name.

After a while, Gale speaks up. "What we need is to get him out in the open. Then one of us could pick him off." he says.

I frown. "Does he ever appear in public anymore?" I ask.

"I don't think so," says Cressida. "At least in all the recent speeches I've seen, he's been in the mansion. Even before the rebels got here. I imagine he became more vigilant after Finnick aired his crimes."

"I bet he'd come out for me," says Katniss. "If I were captured. He'd want that as public as possible. He'd want my execution at his front steps." Katniss pauses. "Then Gale could shoot him from the audience."

"No." I shake my head. "There are too many alternative endings to that plan. Snow might decide to keep you and torture information out of you. Or have you executed publicly without being present. Or kill you inside the mansion and display your body out front."

"Gale?" Katniss asks.

"It seems like an extreme solution to jump to immediately. Maybe if all else fails." he says. "Let's keep thinking."

Above I hear Tigris moving. Minutes later she opens the panel. "Come up. I have some food for you." she says. We start to climb up the stairs.

"Did you contact Plutarch, Tigris?" Cressida asks.

"No way to." Tigris says with a shrug. "He'll figure out your in a safe house. Don't worry."

Tigris gives us some old food. Katniss frowns. "We have some food left over. I wouldn't want you to give up-" Tigris cuts Katniss off.

"I eat next to nothing. And then, Only raw meat." she says.

Katniss divides the food.

As we eat, we watch the Capitol news. They figured out it's only the five of us left. They offer money to who ever can capture us.

"Have the rebels made a statement today?" Katniss asks Tigris, who shakes her head. "I doubt Coin knows what to do with me now that I'm still alive." says Katniss.

Tigris laughs. "No one knows what to do with you, girlie." Then she makes Katniss take a pair of fur leggings.

Once we're downstairs again, we consider a plan, but no one comes up with anything good. We get new bandages, and I'm chained back to the stair support. I fall asleep for a while. When I wake up, I start coughing. Gale rushes over with some water. He sits down next to me and I drink some of the water.

"Gale?" I whisper. He looks at me. "What's his name?" I ask gesturing to the Avox.

"You don't know his name?" Gale asks.

I shake my head. "The squad never introduced themselves. Except for Boggs and Jackson. I only know Cressida's name because I heard Katniss call her that." I say.

Gale nods. "His name is Pollux. I could tell you the rest of the squad's names, but I don't know if the information would be useful to you now." he says.

"That's okay." I finish the water silently. "Thanks for the water," I say.

"No problem," says Gale. "I wake up ten times a night anyway." That sounds like me.

"To make sure Katniss is still here?" I ask.

"Something like that," admits Gale.

I've always felt jealous of Gale. He was Katniss's best friend. He could talk to her. Everyone in town thought they'd end up together. Didn't I go through a short depressed period because of Gale? I still love Katniss. At least, the part of me not influenced by Tracker Jacker venom, still loves her. Why can't that be enough?

"That was funny, what Tigris said. About no one knowing what to do with her." I say.

Gale nods. "Well, we never have," he says.

We both laugh.

"She loves you, you know." I tell him. "She as good as told me after they whipped you."

Gale shakes his head. "Don't believe it. The way she kissed you in the Quarter Quell... well, she never kissed me like that." he tells me.

"It was just part of the show." I say, even though that kiss felt real.

"No, you won her over. Gave up everything for her. Maybe that's the only way to convince her you love her." Gale pauses. "I should have volunteered to take your place in the first Games. Protected her then." he says.

"You couldn't, she'd never have forgiven you. You had to take care of her family. They matter more to her than her life." I tell him.

"Well, it won't be an issue much longer. I think it's unlikely all three of us will be alive at the end of this war. And if we are, I guess it's Katniss's problem. Who to choose." Gale yawns. "We should get some sleep." he tells me.

"Yeah." I say and lay down. "I wonder who she'll make up her mind." I say.

"Oh, that I know." says Gale. "Katniss will pick whoever she thinks she can't survive without."


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

At breakfast, we watch the news, the rebels are controlling the broadcast. A commander came up with the idea to take abandoned cars and send them down streets to trigger most of the pods.

"This can't last," says Gale. "In fact I'm surprised they'd kept it going so long. The Capitol will adjust by deactivating specific pods and then manually triggering them when their targets come in range."

Just minutes after Gale says this the very thing happens on screen. And about twenty rebel soldiers are blown up. "I bet it's killing Plutarch not to be in the Control Room on this one." I say. The broadcast goes back to the Capitol. A reporter announces the blocks that civilians need to evacuate. Tigris offers to be our spy for today, she secures downstairs and leaves.

Katniss paces back and fourth, around the cellar. After almost too long, Tigris comes back. When she opens the panel, I smell the food she made for us. Tigris tells us that Peacekeepers are assigning house guests for some people in the City Circle. On the news a Head Peacekeeper says that shop owners should be expected to open their doors to citizens. "Tigris, that could be you," I say.

The Head Peacekeeper comes back to report an incident where a crowd beat a young man to death because he looked like me. When they show his picture, the only resemblances we have are blonde curls. "People have gone wild," says Cressida. The rebels interrupt the broadcast to inform us that several more blocks have been taken today.

"Line C is only four blocks from here." says Katniss. "Let me wash the dishes."

Gale looks at her. "I'll give you a hand." he says collecting plates. I watch them go to the back of the shop.

When they come back, they straight towards me. "We're leaving in the morning." says Katniss. "But I don't think you should come with us. You could put us in danger." I nod and agree with their decision. They don't want me to come because I could hurt someone.

I'm the Tracker Jacker. I'm the Capitol's weapon against Katniss Everdeen. I am just a piece in their Games.

No. I tell myself. I can't go down without a fight. I'll show the Capitol they don't own me. I'll do anything to help the rebels, and prove that I'm more than just a piece in their Games.

"I'm going out into the Capitol on my own." I tell everybody.

"To do what?" asks Cressida.

I shrug. "I'm not sure exactly. The one thing that I might still be useful at is causing a diversion. You saw what happened to that man who looked like me." I say.

"What if you... lose control?" Katniss asks.

"You mean... go mutt? Well, if I feel that coming on, I'll try to get back here," I say.

"And if Snow gets you again?" asks Gale. "You don't even have a gun."

I shrug. "I'll just have to take by chances," I say. "Like the rest of you."

Gale and I look at each other. I used to hate him. I still do in some ways. I hate that he would be perfect for Katniss. And I'm not. But in ways, I think of him as a friend. And I don't want anything bad to happen to him.

He hands me his nightlock pill. I guess he doesn't want anything bad to happen to me, either. "What about you?" I ask.

"Don't worry. Beetee showed me how to detonate my explosive arrows by hand. If that fails, I've got my knife. And I'll have Katniss, she won't give them the satisfaction of taking me alive." says Gale.

"Take it, Peeta," says Katniss, she reaches out and closes my fingers over the pill. "No one will be there to help you."

We try to sleep, but get woken up by nightmares, and minds that won't shut off. Tigris makes us look exactly like the refugees. "Never underestimate the power of a brilliant stylist," I say.

We plan to leave the shop in three groups. Cressida and Pollux will go first, and then Katniss and Gale, followed by me. I have to follow behind and act as a diversion if one is needed.

"Take care," says Cressida as they walk out the door. Katniss takes out the key, unlocks my handcuffs, and puts them in her pocket. I rub my wrists.

"Listen," says Katniss. "Don't do anything foolish."

I nod. "No. It's last-resort stuff. Completely," I say.

She wraps her arms around my neck. I hesitate. I could go mutt and hurt her. Well, you may never get to see her again. I tell myself. I wrap my arms around her. "All right, then." Katniss says, releasing me.

"It's time," says Tigris. Katniss kisses Tigris's check, and pulls the hood over her head, and puts her scarf over her nose, then follows Gale outside. It's just like the Quarter Quell. I let them separate us, and I lost her. The only difference is that she's better off without me. I could lose myself to the venom and kill her.

"You can go now." says Tigris. I hug her and walk out the door. As I walk, I find soldiers shooting down Peacekeepers. I keep walking, and soon realize that everyone is killing whoever they run into. It doesn't matter who they are. I find a group of dead people who all look pink. I keep going, although I wish I could turn around, and go back to Tigris', but I have to help. I keep going. I really hope the others are still alive.

I see a group of children in a barricade. They're guarded by Peacekeepers. A hovercraft appears above the children. They drop parachutes down. The children grab them. The hovercraft disappeared. Seconds latter, the parachutes explode. I run to the children.

Before I get there, the rest of the parachutes go off.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

I wake up. Doctors surround me. "Hello Peeta. My name is Doctor Aurelius." he says.

I nod and sit up. "What happened?" I ask. "After the parachutes went off?"

Doctor Aurelius shrugs. "The rebels won." he says.

"And Katniss?" I ask. I'm not sure if I want to hear the answer.

"She's alive." he says. I let out a little breath. "But she won't talk. To anyone." he tells me.

"Not even Prim?" I ask.

He shakes his head. "Remember when the first parachutes went off?" he asks. I nod. "After the, medics from District Thirteen rushed in to try to help the children that were still alive. That's when the rest of those parachutes went off."

"So?" I ask.

"Katniss's sister, PrimRose was in that group of medics." he says.

They keep me at the hospital, and I try to find ways to get the venom out. I know I'll never be the same, though. One day, I get to leave my hospital room they take me to a room with the remaining victors I sit in a chair and look at everyone. Haymitch, Johanna, Annie, Beetee, and Enobaria sit around the table with me. Katniss comes in. "What's this?" she asks. I guess Katniss is talking again.

"We're not sure. It appears to be a gathering of victors." says Haymitch.

"We're all that's left?" Katniss asks.

"The price of celebrating," says Beetee. "We were targeted from both sides. The Capitol killed the victors they suspected of being rebels. The rebels killed those thought to be allied with the Capitol."

Johanna scowls at Enobaria. "So what's she doing here?"

"She is protected under what we call the Mockingjay Deal," say Coin as she enters the room. "Wherein Katniss Everdeen agreed to support the rebels in exchange for captured victors' immunity. Katniss has upheld her side of the bargain, and so shall we." Enobaria smiles at Johanna.

"Don't look so smug. We'll kill you anyway." Johanna tells her.

"Sit down, please, Katniss," says Coin closing the door. Katniss sets one of Snow's roses down and sits. Coin starts. "I've asked you here to settle a debate. Today we will execute Snow. In the previous weeks, hundreds of his accomplices in the oppression of Panem have been tried and now await their own deaths. However the suffering in the districts have been so extreme that these measures appear insufficient to the victims. In fact, many are calling for a complete annihilation of those who held Capitol citizenship. However, in the interest of maintaining a sustainable population, we cannot afford this."

"So, an alternative has been placed on the table. Since my colleagues and I can come to no consensus, it has been agreed that we will let the victors decide. A majority of four will approve the plan. No one may abstain from the vote," says Coin. "What has been proposed is that in lieu, of eliminating the entire Capitol population, we have a final symbolic Hunger Games, using the children directly related to those who held the most power." she says, causing all of us to look at her.

"What?" Johanna asks.

"We hold another Hunger Games using Capitol children," says Coin.

"Are you joking?" I ask.

"No. I should also tell you that if we do hold the Games, it will be know it was done with your approval, although the individual breakdown of your votes will be kept secret for your own security." Coin tells us.

"Was this Plutarch's idea?" asks Haymitch.

"It was mine. It seemed to balance the need for vengeance with the least loss of life." says Coin. "You may cast your votes."

"No!" I shout. "I vote no, of course we can't have another Hunger Games!"

"Why not?" asks Johanna. "It seems very fair to me. Snow even has a granddaughter. I vote yes."

"So do I," says Enobaria. "Let them have a taste of their own medicine."

"This is why rebelled! Remember?" I say, looking around the room. We rebelled to stop The Hunger Games. "Annie?" I ask.

"I vote no with Peeta. So would Finnick if he were here." says Annie.

"But he isn't because Snow's mutts killed him," Johanna tells her.

"No." says Beetee. "It would set a bad precedent. We have to stop viewing the other as enemies. At this point, unity is essential for our survival. No."

"We're down to Katniss and Haymitch." says Coin.

Katniss stares at the rose. "I vote yes." says Katniss. I'm about to start shouting at Katniss, she's the one who wanted to end The Hunger Games, when Katniss adds. "For Prim." And I close my mouth.

"Haymitch, it's up to you," says Coin. Now's my last chance to stop this before it happens. I say everything I can think of to stop Haymitch from agreeing to this.

"I'm with the Mockingjay," he says.

"Excellent. That carries the vote. Now we really must take our places for the execution." says Coin.

I walk to the City Circle. They bring Snow out, and secure his hands behind a post. Katniss aims at him. Then the arrow shifts upward, and Katniss releases. I watch as the arrow flies over Snow, and sinks into President Coin. She collapses over the side of the balcony.

I run to Katniss and put my hand over her nightlock pill. Her teeth sink into my flesh, and she pulls away in confusion. She opens her eyes. "Let me go!" she says.

"I can't," I say.

Guards pull Katniss away. I grip the pocket and it rips off, the pill drops to the ground, as they take her away.

Katniss starts struggling to free herself from the guards. They pull her into the mansion and the doors close.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

After the guards took Katniss away, I had to go back to my hospital room. Snow died. People elected our new President, President Paylor. They held a trial to decide what they would do with Katniss. Doctor Aurelius presented Katniss as a shell-shocked lunatic. They decided to release her to District Twelve.

I had to stay, while the doctors tried to help me. I don't know if they'll release me. If they do, I know where I'm going. Home. I turn eighteen in the Capitol.

Doctor Aurelius comes in. "Peeta, how confident are you about stopping yourself from having an episode?" he asks.

"I..." I trail off. How do I feel about stopping the episodes? "I think I've improved... a lot." I say. "I think I could stop myself."

Doctor Aurelius smiles. "Very well, you're free to leave." he says. I grin. I can finally go home. "Just tell Katniss I can't keep pretending to treat her forever." he says.

I'm on a train before I know it. I know Twelve will be very different. Nothing but the Victor's Village was left. I arrive at my house in the Victor's Village at night.

When I lay down to go to sleep I think of Katniss, how she had been through so much, only to lose her little sister in the end. I think of Prim, who died to soon, who died helping those children in the Capitol.

That morning I go into the woods, dig some PrimRose bushes up, and bring them to Katniss's house. I dig a hole in the dirt under her windows. Katniss comes out when she wakes up.

"You're back," she says.

"Doctor Aurelius wouldn't let me leave the Capitol until yesterday," I say. "By the way, he said to tell you he can't keep pretending he's treating you forever. You have to pick up the phone." I tell her.

I frown as I take her in. She looks pail. She's really skinny. And her hair lies in tangled clumps on her head. I don't think she's taken very good care of herself. Katniss tries pushing her hair away from her eyes, and probably just realizing how tangled her hair is, she becomes defensive of herself. "What are you doing?" she asks.

"I went to the woods this morning and dug these up. For her," I say. "I thought we could plant them along the side of the house."

Katniss looks at the bushes. Then she nods. She walks back into her house and I hear the door lock. I put the bushes into the ground. I paint pictures. I paint one picture of my father, my brothers Graham and Rye, and even my mother. They watch me from the clouds. I smile and hang the picture up over my bed.

The next day I wake up and bake bread. I take it to Katniss's house and get there the same time as Greasy Sae. "Hello there, boy." she says smiling.

I smile back at her. "Hello." I say. She cooks breakfast and we all eat.

Katniss starts to get better. One evening, Haymitch, Katniss, and I decide to have dinner together. "So sweetheart, when is your birthday, anyway?" he asks.

Katniss laughs. "It past, already, May 8th. I didn't want a party this year. So I didn't tell you." she says.

Haymitch sighs. "So what did you do?" he asks.

"My mom called me. We talked for hours. It was nice." she says.

"All right," says Haymitch. "But we're throwing you you're nineteenth birthday party. Remember she was born on May 8th, Peeta."

"Oh, did I say May 8th, I meant to say June 8th." Katniss jokes.

Katniss and I start working on a new book. She got the idea from her family's plant book. It's a book filled with the people we know who died. Katniss's father and sister. My family. Tributes. Victors. Squad Members. Katniss even adds Prim's goat Lady. We tell Haymitch about the book, and he adds tributes he'd mentored before us. We draw pictures of the people and add descriptions of them.

Annie sends us a picture of Finnick's son. And it breaks my heart that Finnick couldn't see him.

People come back to District Twelve. They close the mines and turn our district into a medical district. We make medicines, now.

Katniss and I become closer than ever. Katniss still has her nightmares. I still have my moments where I clutch the back of the chair, fighting the Tracker Jacker venom. It turns out, I'm the one Katniss can't survive without. The one she decided to spend the rest of her life with.


	21. Epilougue

Epilogue

The day I first saw Katniss, I knew I was a goner. I knew I wanted to marry her. And that's what I did. On Katniss's twentieth birthday, she became my wife. And I love her more than anything.

I always wanted children, Katniss didn't want them. But fifteen years after the war, look where we are. In District Twelve's hospital waiting for our child to come into the world.

Because Katniss is stubborn, she decided she wasn't going to have this baby easy. That's my wife for you. We've been waiting here for hours, because our baby is also stubborn.

When Katniss first found out she was carrying our child, she was scared. I had been thrilled. And I know she's still very scared, but every now and then, I can sense that she's getting excited to meet our baby.

After several more hours, my daughter is born. And for the second time in my life, I know I'm a goner. She looks so much like Katniss, but she also looks a lot like me. She has Katniss's dark hair, and my blue eyes, and she's beautiful.

Katniss seems at peace holding our daughter in her arms. I lean down and give my wife a quick kiss. She's the love of my life. It's crazy to think that I may not have ever worked up the nerve to talk to my wife if I hadn't been chosen for The Hunger Games.


End file.
